Clergy Sexual Abuse Lawsuit Filed Against St. Luke’s Hospital in Tokyo
A new lawsuit has been filed with the Tokyo District Court alleging that a woman was sexually abused while under the care of St. Luke’s Hospital at 10-1 Akashi-cho, Chuo-ku, Tokyo.
According to the lawsuit, the victim was a patient with an intractable disease and in need of spiritual care when she was admitted to St. Luke’s. While under the care of the hospital, the woman was sexually abused by the hospital chaplain while in his waiting room.
“Sexual abuse by clergy is a serious crime and has a lifelong effect on the victim,” said Harumi Suzuki, leader of SNAP Japan. “St Luke's International Hospital should sincerely apologize to the victim's and remove the perpetrator from his position.”
SNAP Japan is calling on hospital administrators to release information about the chaplain and make public any allegations of sexual abuse and share what they have done in response to those allegations. The best way to prevent cases of sexual abuse from happening again is to ensure that perpetrators are removed from positions of power and that all allegations of abuse are investigated by law enforcement.
The victim herself said “I'm very sad that St. Luke's International Hospital is working with the perpetrators to defend the organization.” She went on to say that “St. Luke's International Hospital should listen to the victim's true voice, take the problem directly, and take responsibility.”
CONTACT: Harumi Suzuki, SNAP Japan ([email protected], +81 5014519773)
(SNAP, the Survivors Network, has been providing support for victims of sexual abuse in institutional settings for 30 years. We have more than 25,000 survivors and supporters in our network. Our website is SNAPnetwork.org)
Winter Appeal 2023
To our friends,
2023 has been a long year with many ups and downs for us all. As we close out the year, we at SNAP hope that you are feeling like you are on your way to being healthy, fulfilled, and happy. This past year has brought both successes and challenges. Thanks to the support you have shown in the past, we’ve been able to celebrate the good days and weather the stormy ones. Now, we are once again asking for your support as we work to support survivors new and old as we ‘Move SNAP Forward.’
At SNAP we are proud to have hosted a very well-attended conference in August 2023. This event allowed us to gather friends, survivors, advocates, and allies for a weekend of camaraderie and connection. We were so happy to be able to welcome many first-time attendees to gather in person and are already looking forward to the next conference.
To strengthen our movement for justice, healing, and prevention, SNAP will be expanding our peer support and providing more volunteer opportunities in the coming year. Through this great work, we are ensuring survivor voices are represented as we work for significant change that will benefit children and survivors.
Right now, survivors worldwide are getting the help they need from SNAP, and more and more reach out to us daily, but we need your help to keep those programs going and get our volunteers the training they need to thrive.
Your tax-deductible gift to SNAP can help offset the cost of our important mission. If you are not in a position to contribute, you can still support us by sharing this letter with those who can. As we continue to fight for survivors across the globe, your donation or sharing the great work SNAP does will help us continue our work to protect the vulnerable, heal the wounded, and prevent abuse.
Your donation ensures SNAP will be there for those who need us more than ever!
Warmly,
Michael W. McDonnell, C.P.S.
Interim Executive Director